Chiaroscuro
Chiaroscuro is a major city in in the world of Exalted and a principle setting of Chiaroscuro Nights. Description Chiaroscuro is a vast shattered metropolis, rising from the ruins of First Age glory. Once, its shining towers of imperishable glass stood dozens of stories high, catching the light and glowing with all the hues of an eternal sunset.But now those towers have fallen and their ragged stumps rise from a confluence of shadows and rubble. Districts of softly-glowing magic glass are separated from one another by tracts and channels of ghost haunted shadow. Streets of blood-red vermilion course through the city, alive with the magic of old, the arteries of a heart that still slowly beats. Chiaroscuro is the largest and wealthiest metropolis of the Southern coast. The city was founded in the First Age, where it was one of the greatest ports in the world, home to twenty million souls. Shattered and depopulated by the twin hammer-blows of the Usurpation and Great Contagion, Chiaroscuro was a haunted, war-torn ruin until the coming of the Tri-Khan and his Delzahn followers. The Tri-Khan slew the city’s petty warlords, sealed Chiaroscuro’s shadowlands with wards of precious salt, bought the goodwill of the Realm with lavish tribute, and reopened the city, declaring ten years free of taxation to entice settlers. The descendants of those pioneers still dwell in the city today. Chiaroscuro is one of the most famous ports in the world, sitting at a confluence of land and sea routes. Its port and trade makes it one of the richest cities in Creation, with wealth that rivals even Nexus. The current Tri-Khan is a clever and canny ruler, and his policies have prevented Chiaroscuro from becoming a mere puppet of the Realm. In the wake of the Empress’s disappearance, he has further diminished the Realm’s control by setting his minders against one another and covertly supporting rebellions in other parts of the Threshold. He has also allied himself with the Guild, using its support to weaken the Realm’s control in exchange for opening his markets to any and all goods. To avoid open conflict with the Realm, the Tri-Khan has outlawed all Anathema, but in practice, Celestial Exalted who hide their nature or open themselves to the service of the Tri-Khan are welcomed and even harbored in the city. As long as they are discreet, all manner of beings may trade or even settle in Chiaroscuro, though any disruption to the city will quickly be met with an attack by the city guard, or a visit by the Wyld Hunt. Chiaroscuro itself is a treasure for the bold. Many of its ruined and haunted districts are still only lightly explored. Scavengers comb the ruins seeking out treasures that contain the barest hints of the city’s former magic. Uncanny individuals from across Creation compete for the right to live in one of the coveted apartments of the Plaza, a neighborhood with functional First Age amenities; admission is permitted only at the whim of Grandmother Bright, a powerful and canny spirit who is always in need of services from the mighty. Sorcerers, Fair Folk, outcastes. and even deathknights make their way to Chiaroscuro, drawn by the light of life, the opportunity for trade, and the shadow of anonymity. Category:Cities Category:Chiaroscuro Nights